10 Things Christian Leaders Had to Say about Politics
The intersection of religion and politics has long been discussed. As Christians who are called to be in the world but not of it, we are nearly always walking a fine line between striving to be separate from culture and politics and at the same time carrying out our civic duties and having a say in who leads our country. Several Christian leaders, both from history and from today, have offered insight into how Christians should view politics and how we, as members of God's Kingdom, should live out our faith in the midst of man-made systems of government. Following are quotes by 10 Christian leaders on this topic:
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1. Russell Moore
“Conservative evangelicals don’t want government support for our faith, because we believe God created all consciences free and a state-coerced act of worship isn’t acceptable to God. Moreover, we believe the gospel isn’t in need of state endorsement or assistance. Wall Street may need government bailouts but the Damascus Road never does.”
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2. Mike Huckabee
“Pray a little more, work a little harder, save, wait, be patient and, most of all, live within our means. That’s the American way. It’s not spending ourselves into prosperity or taxing ourselves into prosperity.”
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3. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
“Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressman and government officials, but the voters of this country.”
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4. Dr. James Dobson
“In a world that might say one vote doesn’t matter…it does matter becaue each person is of infinite worth and value to God… Your vote is a declaration of importance as a person and a citizen.”
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5. Patrick Henry
"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."
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6. Rev. Franklin Graham
"There is no question that America has been a nation that has been blessed by almighty God. There is no other nation in the history of mankind that has done what His nation has done - and it's because of God's hand and His blessing."
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7. John Adams
"The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.
Without religion, this world would be something not fit to be mentioned in polite company: I mean hell.
The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity and humanity.
Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only law book and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited. . . . What a Eutopia – what a Paradise would this region be!"
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8. Pastor John Piper
"The linking of the Christian church with the ruling political regime is not essential to the life and fruitfulness of Christian faith. On the contrary, such linking has more often proven to corrupt the essential spirit of Christ, who typically uses the weak things of the world to shame the strong (1 Corinthians 1:27), and whose life-saving weapons do not consist in media monopolies, commanding wealth, or civil laws.
Followers of Christ are not Americans first. Our first allegiance is to Jesus, and then to the God-inspired word of Scripture, the Bible. This is our charter, not the U.S. Constitution."
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9. Pope Francis
"None of us can say, ‘I have nothing to do with this, they govern. . . .’ No, no, I am responsible for their governance, and I have to do the best so that they govern well, and I have to do my best by participating in politics according to my ability. Politics, according to the Social Doctrine of the Church, is one of the highest forms of charity, because it serves the common good. I cannot wash my hands, eh? We all have to give something! [...] A good Catholic meddles in politics, offering the best of himself, so that those who govern can govern. But what is the best that we can offer to those who govern? Prayer! That’s what Paul says: 'Pray for all people, and for the king and for all in authority.'"
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10. Philip Yancey
"I see the confusion of politics and religion as one of the greatest barriers to grace. C. S. Lewis observed that almost all crimes of Christian history have come about when religion is confused with politics. Politics, which always runs by the rules of ungrace, allures us to trade away grace for power, a temptation the church has often been unable to resist."
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Publication date: August 3, 2017
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